Northampton planners spell out options for Round Hill neighborhood

Mark MurrayGawith Hall is among the buildings being sold by Clarke School for Hearing and Speech.

NORTHAMPTON – Expanding the Elm Street Historic District and securing individual Historic Preservation Restrictions seem the two likeliest options for protecting the Round Hill neighborhood, according to a presentation by the Planning Department at Northampton High School Monday night.

Some 40 residents of the area gathered in the high school auditorium for a presentation and slide show by Planning Director Wayne M. Feiden on the topic. Some residents are apprehensive about the fate of the historically and architecturally rich neighborhood as Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech continues to sell off its property, which sits on the crown of the hill.

In November, Clarke announced that it is planning to sell the bulk of its remaining campus, 11.2 acres and 11 buildings, to OPAL Real Estate Group of Springfield. Peter Picknelly, the owner and founder of OPAL, has said he will renovate the existing buildings to create 80 luxury apartments. OPAL does not intend to raze any of the buildings or erect new ones on the property, Picknelly said.

The OPAL sale is the culmination of Clarke's efforts in recent years to downsize its once-sprawling campus atop Round Hill. Founded in 1867, the school has been a mecca for the deaf community, with students coming from all across the country to learn its oral-auditory approach. In its heyday, hundreds of boarding students lived on campus, but with the development of technology such as cochlear implants, which afford almost all deaf people some hearing capability, Clarke has adjusted its mission, venturing out into the mainstream to teach deaf students in their community schools.

Clarke even changed its name from Clarke School for the Deaf to Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech and opened campuses in Boston, New York, Florida and other locations.

While some neighbors say they are pleased with OPAL’s plans, they are nonetheless seeking to protect the character of the neighborhood. Heeding their cry, the Historic District Commission has recommended adding the area to the Elm Street Historic District, which sets standards for the renovation of historic buildings and offers some protections against change. If the expansion is approved by the City Council, it would add 35 buildings, 22 acres and 81 residents to the Elm Street Historic District, which currently has 104 buildings and a population of 357.

Another option being considered, Feiden said, is negotiating Historic Preservation Restrictions with individual property owners. The restrictions, which would be permanent, have the advantage of offering certainty to current owners and developers who would otherwise have to run a gantlet of boards and commissions to gain approval for changes or new construction.

Round Hill Road resident Richard Greene was among those who said they favored the option of expanding the Elm Street Historic District.

“It would protect property other than Clarke’s,” he said.

Some in the audience said they would also like to preserve open space in the area.

Demetrois Panteleakis, a managing partner for OPAL, said he found the speakers at the public hearing engaged and intelligent.

“They’re the kind of neighbors we want to have,” he said. “I think people will be apprehensive until they have the master plan in their hands.”

Panteleakis said he expects OPAL to submit such a plan to the Planning Board within 90 days.

As Feiden explained it, it will ultimately be up to the City Council to either approve the expansion of the Elm Street Historic District or pursue the option of seeking individual Historic Preservation Restrictions. The council must approve either plan by a vote of at least six councilors, he said.